The Young Transfigurationist
by vichn93
Summary: Lily Luna Potter has graduated from Hogwarts and is ready to get her life started. Unfortunately, she's not exactly sure what that means. Accomplishments breed success, but what about happiness? A story of growing up, finding yourself, and hanging on to your friends. M for language and later chapters.
1. Chapter 1

**a/n: I've been day-dreaming this story for more than a year now but haven't had the nerve to publish anything. I tend to be a slow writer but make up for it with long chapters! There are some discrepencies between my story and what J.K. has shared about other schools and the wizarding world post-book 7. I incorporate the pieces that I find useful but sometimes like to make up my own facts about the Wizarding World.**

 **Seeking a beta! I do my best but would love another pair of eyes on these chapters.**

 **Hope you enjoy! Feedback is appreciated.**

Chapter 1: The Young Transfigurationist [July-August 2030]

The ominous clouds overhead released sporadic bouts of rain as the people of London bustled this way and that, umbrellas open and coat collars popped against the damp. Most people kept their eyes down on the look-out for dastardly puddles. Eye contact in London was a rare commodity between strangers. A young woman bounded along the trail of Hyde Park despite the weather. In fact, she didn't seem to be deterred at all even when the drizzles turned into a more serious downpour.

Lily had learned after her first run in London to cast water repelling charms before leaving the house. It wasn't that she minded getting a little damp, but why run with water in your eyes when you could avoid it? The young witch had recently graduated from Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and after two very long days living with her parents had quickly agreed to flat-sit for her older brother while he went on a month-long training program with the Auror department. He would be returning in one week which meant that Lily would either have to move back in with her parents or break out on her own; something she wasn't convinced was financially possible.

Not to mention that she had absolutely no idea what she wanted to do now that the seven years of Hogwarts had come to a seemingly abrupt finish. Albus had told her not to worry about her apparent lack of direction. He had taken a full year to decide what to do after school, much to the chagrin of their parents and extended family. Lily could remember the awkward family dinners from last year's holidays and had no intention of repeating Albus's performance.

Neither Harry or Ginny seemed to fully appreciate their children's wide expanse of options post-graduation. That is not to say that all three were complete and utter geniuses who could do whatever they wanted, but, well, the threat of death and catastrophic destruction had done wonders for her parents' professional drives. Ironically, her Aunt Hermione had been the only one supportive of her inability to choose a career path at the young age of eighteen.

"Muggles sometimes go through several more years of school before they enter the workforce." Hermione had explained to Ginny quietly one afternoon over tea.

Lily had blushed, even as she stood at the bottom of the stairs, to know that her parents were worried about her. She had quickly marched through the house and out the front door for her afternoon run before she could hear anything her mother might have to say. She knew Ginny Weasley was still slightly embarrassed by Albus. Lily didn't fault her for this, after all the Weasley-Granger-Potter-Lupin clan was notorious for having birthed an entire generation of over-achieving, world-saving witches and wizards. It was hard for the likes of Ginny Weasley, professional quidditch player and award-winning reporter to fathom the gripping indecisiveness that froze her children's forward momentum.

Lily exited the park and ran back to her brother's dingy apartment. She could have taken the tube, but knew that the other passengers might give her strange looks if she were completely dry in the midst of this summer rain-storm. At least while she was moving no one realized that her clothes and face weren't getting soaked.

Lily's running habit was the only thing keeping her sane at the moment and she felt that if she kept running it might stave off the sense of impending doom that threatened her whenever she was still.

"Hey! Watch it!" a group of tourists called as they collided with Lily, their eyes too busy on their camera's viewfinder and phone screens to have noticed her.

"Sorry, sorry." Lily mumbled, slipping through them as quickly as she could.

"I have got to get one of those jackets! She's completely dry!" A teenage girl in the mass of picture-snapping Americans shouted. Lily rolled her eyes and kept moving.

After a quick shower Lily made herself a cup of tea and stood at the counter reading the _Daily Prophet_. She blew on the steaming mug periodically to help it cool.

"You should just use a cooling charm." A voice muttered from the doorway.

"Merlin's beard, Albus!" Lily screeched, sloshing hot tea across the paper and her shorts.

"Nice to see you too, sis!" Albus said with a smile. He dropped his heavy bag on the wobbly kitchen table and took the mug from Lily's hands.

"Ugh, too much sugar," he said with a grimace, continuing to drink. His hands were pink from what Lily suspected to be cold and he was bundled up in a long coat with a dark scarf tucked smartly beneath his green jumper. There were small bits of snow in his dark brown hair.

"So you dropped out, then?" Lily asked teasingly. She had moved on from the tea and was now peeling an orange, offering every other slice to Albus.

"No." Albus muttered with a scowl, "Some idiot blew up the site and they sent us all home. Won't be surprised if they scrap my whole class after that. Cost the ministry hundreds of thousands of galleons to send us out there and trainee just went and blew up half an island in the North Sea!"

"Sounds serious," Lily said with a raised eyebrow.

"Dad went ballistic." Albus admitted, nodding his head and hopping up to sit on the counter. He leaned down to unlace his boots.

"Ugh, Albus. Those reek. Seriously, didn't you bathe while you were up there?" Lily pinched her nose and shoved her older brother.

Albus responded with a smirk and waved the shoes in front of her face. With a flick of her wand Lily sent them zooming to his room.

A pop sounded from the hall and James poked his head into the kitchen.

"Mum wants us home for lunch today." He announced.

"Hello to you too, Jamesie." Lily cooed sarcastically.

"Hello, sister dear."

"What's this all about?" Albus asked him, now releasing his feet from the confines of thick woolen socks. The kitchen immediately became hostile to human life.

"Argh!" Lily cried, launching herself from the room.

"Albus, mate, you have got to do something about those feet." James said sadly.

"I think it's a fungus." Albus admitted with a sheepish shrug.

"Absolutely fucking disgusting!" Lily screamed from the safety of the spare room just down the hall.

At the same time, the fireplace roared to life and Ginny Potter swiftly clambered out.

"Albus Potter!" She said loudly.

"What have you done?" James breathed, hurrying to scurry out of the way of his mother's wrath.

"Yes, mum?" Albus asked, his voice squeaking slightly.

"Thank Merlin you're alright!" Ginny said, rushing into the kitchen to hug her middle child. She was thwarted, by the stench of the child's feet.

"What is that smell?" She asked. Lily and James sniggered loudly from the spare room, safely out of sight.

"Oi! Shut up in there." Albus said. "It's a fungus, mum."

"A fungus, dear?" Ginny asked.

"From that bleeding island Dad had us locked away on for three weeks."

"Yes, I've had words with your father about that already." Ginny said comfortingly. "Anyway, I came to collect you all for lunch. We're having a bit of a party to celebrate Albus coming home!"

"Mum, I really do not need a party to celebrate...completely unnecessary."

Ginny ignored his protests.

"Come along, James, Lily! I need your help at the house." There were groans from the spare room, but Ginny ignored those as well. "At the house in ten minutes, you three." She spun and was gone with a crack.

"Why did you have to come back a week early?" Lily grumbled loudly as she entered the kitchen again. She brandished her wand once more and the offensive socks were quickly vanished (James would later return to his own flat and find them snuggled up quite cozily to his favorite pillow).

"You can still stay here even though I'm back." Albus assured her, hoping off the counter to stretch.

Lily's scowl did not disappear.

"I promise not to tell mum and dad every time you bring some girl home either." Albus said with a wink. James _giggled_ from behind her.

"Oh right, because you two don't have one-night stands."

"Of course we do, Lily," James agreed, "but at least mum and dad know who we're sleeping with."

"I'll tell them eventually." Lily promised.

"That's what you've been saying for your entire life." Albus said, rolling his eyes.

"I don't have time for a family interrogation!" Lily argued. Her temper always seemed to flare when her brother's brought up this particular topic.

"Right, because lounging around here and re-reading your transfiguration books is very, very important." Albus snapped back.

"And with that, I'm out." James said awkwardly. He disapparated, swiftly followed by a glowering Lily.

Albus sighed and headed for the shower. He had always known that his entire family was bizarre, each member in their own special way. Lily had always been exceptional. Her magic had been much more subtle and gentle than her brothers' magics when they were little. James and Albus would simply fling their toys around the room whereas Lily would carefully attach hand-crafted paper wings to all her dolls before having them hover like small pixies.

On her 11th birthday, a full six months before she entered Hogwarts, Lily had perfected the wing-transplants so well that she had cajoled her hoard of make-shift creatures to follow her around for an entire week. Invisibly. Albus wouldn't have believed it at all until his Dad shared the story with James and Albus one summer night after the boys expressed concerns about how to protect their small and consequently defenseless sister. Apparently the invisible toys had led an aerial attack against the neighbor's rose-bushes where Lily claimed an 'evil wizard' was hiding. The wizard turned out to be the neighbor's extremely fat and lazy cat.

In August of 2019, when Lily had finally received her wand Albus was very jealous. At 12 and 3/4 inches, Lily's wand was the longest of all the Potter children (something that would be turned into a raucous joke once Lily _officially_ came out to her brothers during her third year), but it was also beech, one of the most prestigious of wand woods. The unicorn hair core was the same as his and James', but thirteen year old Albus easily ignored that important detail.

Albus reminisced further about the peculiarity of his sister while brushing his teeth. The biggest shock that had ever shaken the Weasley family in generations had been caused by Lily when the Sorting Hat had been placed on her auburn hair that fateful September evening (Albus swears it was raining although Lily and James agree that it was a crisp and clear night) and announced swiftly, "SLYTHERIN".

After several months of secretly exchanged letters between Lily, James, and Albus while their parents waited in agony with no word from any children, a howler had arrived for Lily in the middle of her first flying lesson:

" _LILY LUNA POTTER! HOW DARE YOU NOT WRITE TO YOUR MOTHER. YOU SHOULD BE ASHAMED OF YOUR COMPLETE DISRESPECT FOR YOUR FATHER AND ME! I EXPECT LETTERS WEEKLY FROM YOU AND YOUR BROTHERS._

 _Oh, dear, we are so proud of you for your sorting. Give 'em hell!"_

James and Albus heard re-tellings through the Gryffindor first year's who had been present. The three had eaten dinner together at the end of the Gryffindor table that night, spending most of the time writing long and detailed letters to appease their overbearing mother.

Pulling on a different pair of uninfected shoes, Albus mused that his Hogwarts experience had been drastically different from his sister's, despite the fact that they had both chased after the Quidditch Cup and girls with the same Potter tenacity. He would never know what really happened behind the closed door of the Slytherin common room. It had been scary, at first, to realize this. In his final two years at Hogwarts, however, Albus accepted that Lily was the last Potter anyone should ever worry about. She had gone on to prove him correct-in fifth year she became Prefect and in her seventh, Head Girl. Their parents had been over the moon.

With a smile at the happy memory of the letter she had sent to him to relay the news, Albus disapparated to Godric's Hollow to join the rest of his family.

Harry Potter had realized several years ago that his family operated best in a state of chaos. For this reason, he was not even slightly rankled by the noise outside of his office door. Sure, it sounded like Louis had stolen his sisters' wands again and was attempting to perform spells with all three at once, but really, Harry wondered, what could happen that they hadn't seen before?

"Dad!" Lily said breathlessly as she opened his door.

"Yes, dear?" The raucous outside grew significantly in volume.

"Louis has stuck baby Lupin to the the ceiling, they think it might be permanent."

"Not again." Harry groaned. Suddenly, loud cheering erupted.

"We got him! We got him!" James screamed from down the hall.

"Never mind, false alarm!" Lily assured him, glancing over her shoulder in time to see Geoffrey Lupin hoisted into the air like the Quidditch Cup. She quietly shut her father's door once more.

Like Harry said, utter chaos.

Despite the outrageous behavior of the Weasley-Potter-Lupin clan before dinner, the meal went off relatively smoothly and the three Potter children were able to beg off after helping their mother with the washing up.

"Fancy a pint?" James asked as they all stood in the backyard of their parents house.

"Yes!" Albus and Lily said at the same time.

"Leaky Cauldron?" Lily offered quickly. The other two nodded and all three trudged back inside to use the Floo.

"We're off, mum! Bye Dad!" Lily said over the noise of her relatives.

She didn't bother waiting for a response, knowing that her mum probably couldn't hear them anyways.

The Leaky Cauldron was busy and the Potters had to fight off a group of Hogwarts girls who still referred to Lily as "Head Girl" for their spacious booth.

"First round's on me." James offered before heading to the bar.

"That girl is staring at you." Albus told Lily with a frown. "She doesn't look too happy."

"Probably thinks I'm someone else." Lily said with a shrug, pushing her fringe out of her eyes. Over christmas break she had let her dorm mates cut her hair-a style that Ginny had shrugged off as 'Slytherin' while Al and James sniggered at their mum's oblivious nature. It was now, Albus and James agreed, fairly possible when looking at Lily to assume that she was gay.

"Nope, definitely knows it's you," Albus said, "She's clearly bitching to her friends about you."

Lily couldn't stop herself from turning around.

"Fuck me." She groaned, quickly whipping back to face her brother.

"Who is it?" he asked just as Lily said, "We have got to go."

"We are not going anywhere," James said forcefully, "I just got back with the drinks!"

"She's definitely coming over here," Albus told Lily.

"Fuck, fuck, fuck."

"What the hell is going on?" James asked, clearly confused.

"Hello, Potter." A cold voice said from Lily's right.

"Green." Lily mumbled with a brief nod in the other woman's direction.

Albus and James sat very still, not daring to breathe.

"Can't even look at me, can you?" The woman, Green, demanded. "Not that I should be shocked, what with the way you treated me and every other girl this year. How you made Head Girl I'll never know. You're nothing but a lying bitch."

"That's enough." Albus said stonily, standing up.

"Oh, Albus Potter." Green said with a snort. "I don't have time for you, sit back down."

"Shut the fuck up, Jess." Lily snapped. "None of us were bothering you so why don't you just go sit back down."

"But you are bothering me, Potter. You sitting here acting like you did nothing wrong is really, really bothering me."

"I didn't do anything wrong." Lily told her with a blank face.

"How can you say that?" The girl slammed her hands down onto the table. The neighboring booths shushed their friends to better hear what was being said. "You used me and then threw me away when you were done! You can't do that to people, Potter."

"I did not use you! I was very honest from the beginning about how I felt." Lily argued.

"I loved you!" Jessica Green announced.

"And I broke it off with you because I didn't love you, Jess. I didn't know you were in love. You're mad at me for ending our relationship, but are trying to say that I lied about my feelings?You can't have it both ways." Lily replied, crossing her arms.

The woman's friends, all of whom Lily recognized from school, rushed over and escorted Jessica back to their table.

"Ravenclaws." Lily said derisively with a roll of her eyes.

"Fucking nuts." James agreed, taking a swig of his beer.

"Not as bad as this girl I just dated." Albus said.

"Out with it then," Lily said with a grin. She tried to ignore the soft crying sounds coming from the table behind her.

"Damn, Lily, what did you do to that girl?" James asked, cutting Albus off. Lily turned around to see that Jessica was full on sobbing now.

"Nothing she hadn't done to anyone else, I assure you." Lily muttered.

"Wait, you broke her heart out of vengeance?" Albus demanded

"Of course not, that would be cold-hearted and exceedingly cruel."

"You know, Albus, some days I forget that our little sister here is a Slytherin. And then I hear shit like this and I wonder how I ever forgot!" James said before draining his pint.

"She totally abused her power as prefect! Took advantage of a fourth year, it was disgusting." Lily assured them.

"That's our Lily," Albus began, "out to protect all the budding lesbians from those predatory prefects, _and_ , getting laid in the process."

Albus and James high-fived.

"That is disgusting, I did not have sex with her!"

"No sex? You mean you made-out with that woman in a broom-cupboard and now she's suddenly proclaiming her love in public?" James was astounded.

"There were certain, favors, that I did for her. But she never reciprocated. There was no sex."

"No, just, clearly some calculated manipulation on your part!" Albus said loudly.

"Shut up!" Lily hissed, slapping her brother.

"Lily, how serious were these favors were talking about?" James asked suddenly.

Lily flicked her tongue out once, twice, with an exaggerated wink at her oldest brother.

"Gross, James, why do you even ask?" Albus said, faking retching noises.

"From what I hear, this sister of ours has some serious talent and I need her to teach me!" James said defensively.

"James, you're 22 years old. It might be too late." Lily laughed.

"Heads up, Lils. You've got another admirer headed this way." Albus warned.

When Lily turned this time, she smiled softly at the young student who stopped at their table.

"Potter." She said with a smile and a nod.

"Mission accomplished, I think." Lily responded. The other girl nodded once more before moving away from the three siblings.

"Slytherins." James and Albus mumbled simultaneously.

"Next round is on me." Lily promised to appease their Gryffindor sensibilities. The Potter men cheered.

James, Albus, and Lily did not leave the Leaky Cauldron until well past midnight. It had been several weeks since the three had been able to catch up with one another and the they clearly needed a little relief from everything else going on in their lives.

James was on the brink of proposing _and_ getting his wretchedly incompetent boss fired. Albus had single-handedly saved the thirty Auror trainees just this morning from death by explosion with a lot of luck and the _Protego_ charm. Lily, everyone assumed, was drifting helplessly with absolutely no idea of where to steer herself next.

"Jus' tart wit what you don' twana do." James advised, slurring his words.

"I think that what he means," Albus began pompously with one hand on James's head and his eyes closed in concentration, "is that you shouldn't be worried about finding what you want, just avoid what you don't want!"

"That is immensely helpful, you idiots." Lily said sarcastically.

Arm-in-arm, the three stumbled home drunkenly through the fireplace of the Leaky Cauldron.

Lily woke with a pounding headache and an empty stomach. She rolled over slowly, convinced that any sudden movements would result in vomiting. 7:03am.

"Ugh." Lily moaned, rubbing her eyes for temporary relief. She swung her legs over the bed and had to steady herself for a moment before standing up.

Perhaps those shots of firewhisky had not been the best idea. She slowly opened the door, keeping her eyes closed to avoid any potential for vertigo which would, of course, lead to her vomiting as well.

"I'm parched, give a wizard some water, will ya' sis?" James groaned from the sofa.

"Right." Lily said, stumbling along the wall to the kitchen.

"Good morning!" Albus said brightly from his kitchen table. Lily squinted at him slapped her hands over her ears.

"What are you doing, Al?" She whispered.

"I'm having breakfast. Can I make you anything?" He gestured to the table which Lily saw was covered with eggs, bacon, and toast.

"I'll just have some water for now." Lily told him, slipping into one of the mismatched chairs that Albus had dug out of a muggle dumpster several months ago.

"You two are pathetic." Albus announced as James crawled into the room. He poured Lily a glass of water and did the same for James.

"How are you so happy?" James demanded, leveraging himself into his own green and purple spotted chair.

"Potions and magic, dear brother and sister." Albus answered smartly.

"Why didn't you give us any potions?"

"Because, Lily, then I would have to miss out on making your lives miserable this morning."

"Yes, Albus dear, because you're Gryffindor heart will really let us wallow in misery for much longer." Lily conjured a straw and sipped her water slowly.

"True, of course. You'll be pleased to know that I've spiked your water."

And with that, Albus snapped the Daily Prophet open once more and left Lily and James to their anti-hangover water.

Thirty minutes later, the kitchen table was cleared of food and the three had gone through several pots of tea.

"That hit the spot, Al." Lily said in thanks.

She brought all the dishes to the sink and quickly set them to washing themselves, a handy trick she had learned from her Grandmother Molly one summer.

"Well, this has been fun, but I'd better get to work." James said with a yawn. "Later kiddos!"

"What are you doing today?" Lily asked Albus curiously.

"I have to be in the office in ten." He told her quickly.

"I need a job." Lily whined.

"Yes. Because after next week I'm charging you rent." Albus teased. "Here," he said tossing the Prophet to her, "take a look at the classifieds. You're sure to find something, even if it is just temporary."

"Thanks."

"Have a good day, Lil. Remember, stay away from mum until you've got this figured out."

Lily threw the prophet onto the table after only a few minutes. She didn't want to work in an office, or in a shop on the Alley. How did people even make this decision after graduating? The stress of exams should have been enough to fry Lily's brain, but instead her professor's had pushed career pamphlets and applications into her hands during study periods. Lily hadn't told her family yet, but she had actually applied for a few things that had caught her eye in May.

There was the potioneer internship that she had only applied for out of a sense of obligation. The Head of Slytherin, the current Transfiguration professor, a Mrs. Jeanne Hawthorne, had given Lily three thick packets on exchange programs with France and the United States. These she filled out immediately-requesting letters of recommendation from Professor Hawthorne and Professor Abott, who taught Charms..

The real reason that Lily avoided talking about her future plans with her family, is that she was waiting to hear back from these programs. The Ministry had contacted her the last day she was at her parent's home and informed her that her applications had been received and that pending her exam results, she would be accepted to the International Young Transfigurationist's Society, and pending placement with a research supervisor, would be allowed to participate in one of these three programs.

It was now the first week of August, and Lily knew exam results would be here in roughly two weeks, but the wait was causing her to lose her mind. The last three years of Hogwarts had been consistently filled with new challenges-first she was made Prefect, passed every OWL, and then she had struggled through six full NEWT level courses on top of Head Girl duties.

Laying around Albus's apartment had lost it's appeal after only a week and now Lily was certain she was going stir crazy. To relieve some of her boredom, Lily had taken to to exploring the muggle neighborhoods around her brother's apartment.

Lily liked living in London very much-after the highlands of Scotland and the quiet charm of Godric's Hollow, it was as a relief to be surrounded by people she was not related to or had not grown up seeing for seven years. For Lily Luna Potter, the joys of anonymity were infinite. With that in mind she dressed in her favorite muggle clothes, disillusioned her transfiguration textbooks, and left the apartment.

This early on a Thursday morning, Lily was greeted with a few ambitious muggles out for a jog, but mostly the hustle and bustle of commuters trying to get to the office. Following the crowd she hurried down the steps to the nearest platform and picked the next train heading towards Black Friar's Bridge. Once she surfaced with the rest of the commuters, Lily turned off the main streets and kept her eyes out for a nice coffee shop. She walked for about fifteen minutes before she found one with a few muggles her age, busily typing away on shiny laptops. She made sure to close the door quietly behind her so as not to disturb what she assumed were university students.

"Hello," Lily said quickly, "latte please."

"Sure. Four pound fifty." the guy behind the register said, turning to operate the small machine that would making Lily's coffee.

Lily dug into her jean pocket and pulled out a tenner.

"Here's your change." He said politely before turning to the next customer. Lily cradled the coins carefully and made her way to a small table in the far corner, practically behind the counter.

While she had never been to this particular coffee shop before, it matched many of the others that she had found in this area. Large arm chairs, small tables, and plenty of plugs for those computers that muggles never seemed to be without. The lighting was a little dim for her tastes, making it hard to read the tiny print in _Advanced Metamorphosis of Beings_ but the coffee was good and the soft music played from the counter was relaxing. Lily settled in for her morning study period with a deep sigh.

Lily had been sitting comfortably for almost an hour before she felt like taking a break. Standing up she quickly stretched. The number of people in the cafe had grown by only a handful. There was now a group of tourists sitting near the window and a couple covered head to toe in tattooes sharing a muffin in the corner across from Lily. No one else was reading like she was, which Lily found odd. Everyone was on some sort of computer (except for the punks). Even the tourists were caught up in their little glowing screens, ignoring one another until they found something funny to share. Lily had never realized how important technology had become to muggle culture. Her father had known about things like computers and phones and music players growing up, but he had never been allowed to have any of them. All of his knowledge came from second-hand observation of his cousin's old toys. Aunt Hermione knew a bit more, but even she had completely given up certain muggle conveniences like cell phones after marrying her Uncle Ron.

The Potters had a car and while Lily and her brothers knew how to drive, but Harry didn't often let them take it for any sort of drive longer than a trip to the muggle stores in the next town over.

All of this meant that Lily's fingers were itching to try one of these computers for herself. What could be so engrossing that muggles spent nearly half their lives in front of one?

A young woman came to sit down at the table directly in front of Lily's as these thoughts raced around the witch's head. Much to Lily's excitement, she pulled out her laptop and turned it on. With the way she was sitting, Lily was able to watch everything the girl did on the small screen. Words and pictures began to appear. There were a few clicking noises and Lily realized the girl was typing, then selecting certain boxes on the screen. Sometimes she clicked on words which would then cause another box to open. After a few moment she settled back into her chair and watched what Lily thought at first was an empty green square. Then she saw little dots of color begin to move around. The other woman hunched forward intently to better watch the progress of the dots on the screen. Lily felt herself doing the same. It looked like they were all moving in the same direction, constantly following a smaller white blob. Lily wished she could see better. She scooted her table and chair just a hair closer.

The woman heard and looked over her shoulder. Lily ducked her head, blushing in embarrassment, and pretended to be reading once more. When she peeked through her hair again a few seconds later, the other woman was back to watching her computer. She was also pulling out some notepads and thick books from a heavy looking bag at her feet. Colored pens came next, and Lily watched as the woman carefully assembled everything into neat piles on the table.

Were the moving dots something she had to study? Lily felt she had to find out.

"Excuse me," Lily said quietly. The other woman ignored her. "Excuse me," Lily tried again, slightly louder.

"Yes?" The woman asked, turning around.

"Sorry, but what is it your watching?"

"It's the Liverpool match."

"Right, thanks."

The other woman studied Lily for a minute, expectantly waiting for her to ask the score or who the other team was. When Lily didn't say anything further the woman shrugged and turned back to her textbooks.

Lily couldn't take her eyes off the screen, and she could tell it was bothering the other woman, but after twenty minutes of watching she had finally figured out what she thought was the goal of this new muggle game.

The small white dot was pushed around the field by the other dots, there were two colors (which Lily presumed were the two teams). Sometimes they would get the ball all the way to end of the pitch, and the woman in front of Lily would tense nervously. So far, however, Lily didn't think anyone had scored any type of goals. It seemed to be a very boring game.

She was packing up her books when the woman in front of her jumped up with a yell- "Take that you smarmy bastards!" And she punched the air vigorously.

Everyone in the shop glared at her for disrupting the easy quiet which had previously only been broken by sounds from the espresso machine.

Lily laughed quietly. Apparently the game wasn't _that_ boring after all.

"Wait!" the woman said as Lily scooted past her table.

"Yes?"

"What's your name?"

"Lily, Lily Potter."

"Yes, I thought so. You looked familiar, you look a lot like your parents, you know?"

Lily was completely flabbergasted. How did this muggle know who Lily was, or what her parents looked like?

"Excuse me?" she sputtered.

"Mary Anne Clifton. I graduated same year as Albus."

"You, you're..you're not a _muggle_?" Lily whispered the last word, staring incredulously at the witch standing before her.

"No way, I was in Ravenclaw."

"But, what are you doing?"

"Studying law. I was working in the Ministry for International Cooperation for a year and then decided that no one knew what they were doing when it came to dealing with other muggle governments. I quit, enrolled in university in London and have three years left. There's quite a bit for me to learn, however, both my parents are like us, so I'm taking a few remedial courses this summer."

"You're going to muggle university?" Lily stuttered. She couldn't quite comprehend how she had managed to find another witch masquerading as a muggle simply by wandering through the coffee shops of London.

"Maybe we should go somewhere else?" Mary Anne offered with a smile.

"Uh, yeah, sure." Lily waited patiently while the other girl packed up all of her materials.

"So where to?" Lily asked once they were outside.

"My place is just around the way. You'd be surprised the number of us that go to their universities. I'm living with two kids from America. Right noisy lot they are, but it's been fun."

Mary Anne led Lily around the winding streets, dodging cars and cyclists as she scampered across the busy road.

"Here we go." She said with a smile, standing in front of a bright blue trashcan. She tapped her wand on the lid and before Lily could blink the trashcan was gone, to be replaced by a shining blue door tucked neatly into the brick wall before her.

"Brilliant." She breathed. Sometimes, magic never ceased to amaze her.

"We're on the fourth floor, it's a bit of a hike." Mary Anne said with an apology over her shoulder.

"No problem." Lily murmured, keeping her eyes on the stairs in front of her. Mary Anne was wearing tights under her dress, but it still made Lily a bit uncomfortable to look higher than the woman's ankles.

"Ta-da!" Mary Anne announced, opening a yellow door to her left once the two had reached the proper landing.

"Woah." Lily said with a bright smile. The flat was a mess, clearly well-loved and full of furniture, photos, and miscellaneous magical objects such as cauldrons, broomsticks, etc, but the sink was also full of dishes and there were dirty coffee mugs all over the counters.

"Yeah, it is a bit of a mess. Americans." Mary Anne said humorously.

"That's enough of your imperialist bullshitting, Annie!" came a loud voice from next door.

"Oi! We've got a guest, keep it down." Mary Anne hollered back with a grin. "Take a seat." she told Lily, pulling out her wand and summoning a stool from the next room. There was a loud thud before the stool appeared.

"Annie!" Another male voice shouted. "My books, Annie!"

"Oops." Annie whispered with a wink to Lily.

Lily sat on the stool and watched Mary Anne make them two cups of tea.

"Who's this?"

Lily turned and saw a short, blond haired American standing in the kitchen's small entry-way (which was covered by a dirty bead curtain, Lily assumed no one here knew any real house-keeping spells).

"I'm Lily." she said, sticking out her hand.

"Derrick, nice to meet you Lily." Derrick smiled softly.

"Where's Matt?" Mary Anne asked as she handed Lily a steaming mug of tea.

"Any sugar?" Lily asked hopefully.

"On the counter." Derrick pointed it out to her. He turned to Mary Anne, "He's busy picking up the books you just spilled everywhere."

"Doesn't he have a wand for that type of thing?" Mary Anne asked rudely.

"We Americans don't have to wave our wands for every little thing." Derrick teased.

"Well, it looks like you should definitely try and wave it for that..." Lily informed him, gesturing to the kitchen sink.

Mary Anne giggled.

"I've always been useless at domestic spells." A new voice said from behind Derrick.

"Well that's fine," Mary Anne said, "It's Derrick's week on dishes anyway."

"I'm Matt." the new voice offered Lily.

"Pleasure to meet you two." Lily nodded.

"So are you going to muggle school too?" Derrick asked.

"Uh, no, I was just in the coffee shop and ran into Mary Anne."

"You can call me Annie."

"So you two know each other then?" Matt asked.

"No, I recognized her. She looks a lot like her brother-we were in the same year at Hogwarts."

"That's a bit creepy, Annie." Derrick informed his flatmate.

"If you knew their family you wouldn't think it was creepy at all. The three of them look like triplets."

"We do not!" Lily argued, refusing to believe that she looked anything like the disgusting Potter boys.

"Don't worry, Lily, clearly you're the best looking triplet." Annie laughed.

"Still in school, Lily?" Matt asked.

"Uh, no. Just graduated in June."

"Congratulations!" He and Derrick cried at the same time.

"Thanks." Lily said with a quick smile.

"What're you up to now?"

"Living with Albus, that's my middle brother, still trying to figure out what to do next."

"I remember when I had just graduated," Derrick began, "I actually ended up working for my dad, he's a muggle lawyer, for about six months before I finally got enough nerve to apply through the exchange program. And now, here I am! Ready to study environmental law and work for your Ministry in another year."

"I'd rather not work with my family if I can avoid it." Lily said in response.

"Don't blame you." Annie snorted. "What are your brothers doing now?"

"James is working as a liaison between some of the international leagues and the Ministry-gearing up for the next World Cup. Albus is training with the Auror department."

"Aurors are a bit like the FBI, aren't they?" Derrick asked.

"I've no idea what the FBI is." Lily admitted with a shrug.

"No, I think that's more like the Department of Mysteries." Matt suggested.

"No, no. That's like the CIA." Annie corrected.

Lily was completely lost.

"Anyway, Lily, the point of the story was, don't stress. One day you'll wake up and realize what you want to do…and then you'll enter a mad panic trying to make it happen." Derrick patted her shoulder gently.

"Thanks." she nodded.

"Anyone up for a quick bite?" Annie asked.

"Definitely."

"Ditto."

"I'm in."

The four quickly exited apartment. Lily was the last to leave the room and so she charmed the dishes to start washing themselves.

"Is it okay if we head to the Leaky Cauldron?" Lily asked. "I need to stop at Flourish & Blotts afterwards."

"Of course." Derrick said happily.

"How are we getting there?" Matt asked, leading them all down the stairs.

"The tube!" Annie shouted excitedly. Lily laughed at her.

"Ugh, no way. That'll take ages." Matt argued.

"Can't we just apparate?" Lily asked.

"We'll have to take these two side-along." She jerked her thumb at Matt and Derrick in front of them. "They haven't bothered to take the test here yet." Annie rolled her eyes.

"That's fine." Lily shrugged.

"Score!" Derrick said, clearly happy to have avoided the tube as well.

"Let's go." Annie ordered, holding her arm out to him and quickly popping away.

Lily held her arm out to Matt who grabbed hold tightly before she too, disapparated to the small courtyard behind the Leaky Cauldron.

"Back again, Lily?" Hannah Longbottom called from behind the bar. "I don't want anymore trouble like last night!" She teased with a wink.

"Trouble?" Derrick asked, his eyes lighting up in suspicion.

"I didn't cause any sort of trouble." Lily said hotly, sending her foster-aunt a glare while the woman's back was turned.

"Of course not." Annie assured.

The four ate quickly and afterwards Derrick and Matt shared stories with Lily of growing up in America as wizards. The two hadn't gone to school together, in fact, hadn't even lived anywhere near one another. Derrick was from the northeast and Matt's family was from Texas.

There were four Wizarding schools on the east coast alone, Lily learned-New York, Baltimore, Philadelphia, and Charleston. Derrick had attended school in the south, New Orleans, and the two boys promised Lily that there were at least ten more schools scattered around the country that they could think of.

"But that's at least 15 schools!" Lily cried, shocked.

"And most of them are bigger than Hogwarts." Annie informed her.

"How does America have so many witches and wizards?" Lily wanted to know.

"All that immigration!" Matt said.

"It's true-the blending of so many types of magics finally seems to have caused a large spike in the wizarding population across America in the last few decades." Derrick nodded smartly.

"Some scholars believe that the it was also the mixing of so many muggles that aided in the exponential increase-we're talking about a tripling in the number of magical students between 1900 and 1950. That excludes the numbers from immigration after the World Wars."

Lily was quite shocked. How could America support that many schools when England was struggling to fill Hogwarts?

She was still puzzling this when the four entered Flourish & Blotts.

"Miss Potter!" Lily spun around at the sound of her Professor's voice.

"Hello, Professor Hawthorne. Good summer?"

"Very good, yes. Do you have a moment?" Hawthorne asked, glancing behind Lily to other three.

"Of course." Lily said.

"Excellent, walk with me." Hawthorne grabbed Lily's shoulder and marched her off to an empty aisle ("History of Charms, Jinxes, and other temporary modification spells").

"I received a letter from the director of the YTS just this morning. The Ministry is holding your scores back for further review-"

Lily paled and felt her stomach drop.

"No, no, it's nothing like that! They've requested pensieve from your examiners. They want to study your methods on one of the transfiguration practicals."

"They what?" Lily asked, very confused.

"Anyway, my colleague at YTS, a Mr. Hollingsworth, has informed me that your application has been accepted! In light of your high marks and innovative mind they're crafting a new program for you!"

"What?" Lily said, dumbfounded.

"Oh, Lily! I'm so proud of you!" Professor Hawthorne, who had never so much as patted Lily on the back, pulled the girl into a vicious hug.

"Thank you, Professor." Lily was still in shock.

"Well, hurry on, best get back to your friends! You should be receiving your letter next week, no later than Tuesday." WIth that, Professor Hawthorne marched away just as abruptly as she had pulled her former student into a bone-crushing hug.

Lily leaned heavily against the shelf behind her, certain she would either puke or start crying any minute now.

They wanted her! Her mind screamed, over-joyed.

The world's most elite transfiguration society had accepted her application-her! She had been a student less than two months ago, but the examiners had seen something that was clearly good enough to be accepted.

"Lily?" Annie asked from the end of the aisle.

"Coming!" Lily said breathlessly.

"Are you alright?"

"Yes, I'm fine. Just some news about my exams. Not sure what it was all about, honestly." Lily lied.

She could not jinx this. It was better to ignore the fluttering butterflies instead of bragging and sounding like a snob.

"Oh, I'm sure everything is fine. Don't worry about those stupid results." Annie said.

"Yeah, I just need to pick up a few books." Lily said with a nod and a smile.

Now she definitely needed to get these new transfiguration books! Before she had moved to Albus's flat, Lily had convinced her parents to invest more galleons into Lily's growing library. Ginny had finally relented agreeing with Lily that whatever she did next, she would surely need to learn more, and wasn't this obsession with transfiguration books showing some sort of drive from her daughter?

Lily had been gifted with fifty galleons, which seemed like an outrageous sum for books, but in reality was only enough to buy one of the books she wanted.

"Just the one?" The shopkeeper teased Lily when he saw the youngest Potter standing before him.

"Unfortunately." She said with a weak smile.

"Why not trade in some of the others? Between two or three of those other books you've got at home you could definitely get the second volume!" He offered.

Lily shook her head-you never traded in a book! Even the most basic of texts offered important insight into the history and structure of magic.

"No thanks, I'll just have to wait till the holidays."

The shopkeeper, Mr. Pudgins, scowled as he rang up the book. He wasn't mad at Lily, he just thought it was a shame that such a bright girl wasn't able to afford all the books she wanted-especially after seeing the Potters dote on their boys with expensive racing brooms and Quidditch gear. He would have to have a word with Hermione Granger next time she came into the shop...perhaps she could convince the Potters that their daughter's interests were much more grounded (literally) than their son's!

"Is that all you needed?" Derrick and Matt asked once Lily found the again, browsing the sections on magical beasts native to Europe.

"Yep, I'm done." Lily felt the itching desire to go home and start reading immediately. She knew it was rude to leave in such a hurry after just meeting these three.

Annie solved her dilemma by announcing that she had to head back to the flat now and actually study for her exam. The boys nodded their heads, agreeing that they too should probably study.

"Here," Lily said, quickly grabbing a quill and scrap of parchment from her bag. "This is Albus's address-write me and we can meet up again?"

"Of course." Annie said with a bright smile.

"Bye, Lily!" Matt and Derrick called, heading back to the Leaky Cauldron to use the Floo.

"Good bye." She responded.

"Good to see you again, Potter." Annie said quietly, glancing at her from under her lashes. Lily blushed a little as the the older woman look her up and down. She finished with a wink and then turned to follow her flatmates.

What a day, Lily thought to herself. She quickly apparated back to Albus's flat with a small smirk.

"Hello, Lily."

"Mum!" Lily exclaimed. "What are you doing here? Scared me half to death."

Ginny Weasley was sitting on the bright red couch in Albus's main room. In her hands was a carefully folded, emerald piece of parchment. Lily recognized the seal on the back.

She gulped. Professor Hawthorne had said it wouldn't come until Tuesday!

"You got some mail at the house. Thought I'd pop over and bring it to you. Looks very important."

Ginny held the letter out to her daughter with a small smile. Lily's hands were shaking. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath before opening it.

 _Dear Ms. Potter,_

 _It is with great pleasure that I write to you to welcome you to the Young Transfigurationist's Society-Great Britain Chapter. Based on your outstanding academic performance and glowing letters of recommendation we are pleased to announce that you have been named the Minerva F. McGonagall Chair of Innovative Metamorphic Studies of Beasts. This position is typically awarded to Society members who have completed at least one year of additional study and independent research._

 _Upon review of your application materials, interview, and NEWT exam performance, the committee reached the conclusion that your essay on the evolving wand practices used in mammary transfiguration meets the requirements of the position._

 _Please be advised that your first meeting with the rest of the YTS Chairs will be held on September 13th, Ministry of Magic, Floor -34, Room 53G._

 _We eagerly await your confirmation._

 _All my best,_

 _Margueritte Bletchly_

 _Director, Young Transfigurationist's Society_

"Great Merlin!." Lily screamed, staring at her mother, with wide eyes.

"Lily? What is it?" Ginny asked anxiously, taking a step forward.

"I-I've been accepted."

Ginny positively squealed, grabbing her youngest in her arms and squeezing her tightly.

"Lily, that's outstanding!"

"Read it, mum." Lily shoved the letter under Ginny's face.

A moment later- "We have got to tell your father!" And suddenly Lily was being side-alonged to her parent's house where her poor father was working diligently in his study.

"Harry! Our daughter is a genius!" Ginny screamed, smiling so widely Lily was convinced her facial muscles might become permanently damaged. Harry poked his head from his office and quickly summoned the letter from Ginny's hands and read it himself.

"Lily! We are so proud of you, this is incredible." Harry shouted, snatching his daughter into another hug.

"Thank you." Lily stuttered, finally smiling.

"Oh dear, what's wrong?" Ginny asked, turning to look at her daughter anxiously.

"What? Nothing is wrong!" Lily said joyfully.

"You're crying, love." Ginny said with a smile.

"Oh leave the girl alone, Gin." Harry admonished.

When Lily turned to her father she saw that there were tears leaking down his face as well.

"Not you too!" Ginny wailed, her eyes also starting to become glassy.

The fireplace suddenly erupted with green flames, out stepped Uncle Ron and Aunt Hermione.

"Potters!" Ron cried in greeting.

"Oh my." Hermione said, catching sight of the three crying faces.

"Ah, everything's fine." Harry said quickly, wiping his eyes with the sleeve of his jumper.

"Lily's got simply amazing news!" Ginny said, grabbing the letter from her husband's hands and flinging it at Hermione.

Ron and Hermione read the letter together. Her aunt rushed her quickly, hugging her once more.

"Congratulations, Lily! I knew you could do it!"

"Wait, you knew she was applying for this?" Harry asked, confused.

"Well, of course. I helped her edit her final essay!" Hermione admitted.

"Lily! You never told us." Harry admonished.

"I didn't think I would get it, Dad. Didn't want to get everyone's hopes up for nothing." Lily shrugged.

"Well, I think I'm not the only one who agrees that this is most certainly not _nothing_." Ron added from behind his wife.

"Yes, indeed. We must have a party! Oh, your grandparents will be over the moon, Lily."

"Mum, please, no party." Lily begged, looking hopefully at her father for backup.

"We are most certainly having a party!" Ginny shouted.

"Lily, you should celebrate this. You're the youngest chair the YTS has ever appointed!" Hermione informed her.

Lily rolled her eyes. "I would rather wait to celebrate me actually doing something instead of just getting a letter in the post."

"Oh, you silly child." Ginny grumbled.

"No party, mum."

"Fine, but we're at least having your grandparents over for dinner tonight. If you won't be happy then I will." Ginny pouted.

"Take the win." Her father whispered into her ear while Ginny's back was turned.

"Oh, let her celebrate you." Hermione said with a roll of her eyes. She hugged her niece and said quietly, "Ron and the kids and I will have to take you out next week to celebrate too. Really, Lily, this is something to be proud of!"

Uncle Ron squeezed her shoulder and ruffled her hair. "Good job, kiddo!" Before the two hopped back into the fireplace.

"How did they know to come over?" Lily asked suddenly, realizing how weird it was that they had known exactly when to arrive.

"I may have sent them an owl earlier." Harry admitted. "We had no idea what this Young Transfigurationist's Society was, or why they were writing to you."

"We've been waiting on tenterhooks all day!" Ginny added.

Lily rolled her eyes and headed for the stairs.

"And where do you think you're going?" Ginny asked.

"Upstairs. Just got a new book, I've got to start reading now!"

Harry and Ginny beamed proudly as Lily took the stairs two at a time.

"Our daughter is a genius!" Ginny whispered excitedly once they heard the door close.

"Yes, she is!" Harry said, grabbing his wife and spinning her around before they collapsed onto the sofa with a laugh.

"I should write mum about dinner." Ginny said.

"I'll write to the boys." Harry said with a nod.

"Shouldn't you be going into the office?" Ginny teased.

"The day's almost over…" Harry whined.

"Harry Potter, you haven't retired yet! Get to the office now."

"Fine." Harry said, grabbing his traveling cloak off the peg near the fireplace.

"Dinner at seven sharp!" Ginny called over the roar of the fireplace as her husband left.

Upstairs, Lily was tucked neatly into the large armchair in the corner of her room. She had transfigured it to match her favorite chair in the Slytherin common room (silk pillows included).

Lily's room was always perfectly calm, in direct contrast to the Potter family home. She had cast several charms in fifth year to replicate the sounds from the Slytherin dorms, the echoes of running water from the Lake's underground caverns. In the winter, the common room fireplace was kept so high that she had always been lulled to sleep by the sound.

Her bedroom walls were still painted a soft periwinkle from her pre-Hogwarts days, but over the years there were photos stuck to the walls and plenty of small souvenirs from her schoolmates littering her bookshelf. The room, like many rooms of Hogwarts students, was a clash of an 11-year old's personality and her daily life at Hogwarts. It was always a shock for parents to recognize this, it typically happened between fourth and fifth year when mothers and fathers all over England finally realized that their children not only loved Hogwarts, but dreaded coming home for the long summer months away from their friends. The shock usually caused late nights spent crying and flipping through their own Hogwarts memorabilia. Ginny had thought she was over this sort of behavior after the first two had gone off to school, but there was something about her youngest that just inspired a tenacious need to _hold on_ that caused Ginny to turn into a zombie from September until December of that first year.

Ginny's favorite Christmas was Lily's first year at Hogwarts. Her three children had returned, closer than ever, happy and louder than Ginny could ever remember. There had been spellwork competitions, quidditch practices (even though they flew on opposing teams), and many secret potion brewings in the bathroom that Ginny pretended to not notice.

When they had dropped James, Albus, and Lily back at the train station for the start of second term, Ginny put on her Holyhead Harpies' game face. No tears, just pure adrenaline as she shipped them off once more.

For the first three years of Lily's Hogwarts career, before Lily had really started telling her parents anything about her new house, classmates, or friends, Ginny would sneak to her daughter's room at least once a week and study all of the photos on the wall. Even if her daughter wouldn't tell them much, Ginny was determined to be involved in her life. She would often drop hints in her letters, _Lily, I was in your room for the winter clothes and noticed the picture of that blonde boy, what's his name?_

Imagine her shock when Lily had written back the very next day informing her that the blonde boy was none other than Scorpius Malfoy. Ginny had run up to the room once more, letter in hand, and squinted at the photo. Apparently, the Greengrass genes had won out in the end, because this boy no longer looked anything like Draco. Ginny frowned when she noticed his arm draped tightly over Lily's shoulder. She had flipped the letter over and wrote back using the same parchment only one line- "He's a bit old for you, isn't he?"

Lily and Scorpius Malfoy had always found the presumption that they were a couple hilarious. Lily had scribbled just underneath her mother's question the cryptic memo, "Don't worry, he's not my type." before she had hurried off to her first class of the day (Potions that year).

Ginny's attempts to interrogate her two sons via owl post was equally fruitless. Both boys had ignored the question the first few times, filling their letters with pointless details and stories the likes of which Ginny had never before been privy to. Finally, Albus and James had written her one letter that simply said, "He's gay, mum. Love, James and Al."

Ginny had heaved an enormous sigh of relief that wintry February day of 2025.

Lily held the photo between her small hands, remarking upon the fact that her nails really were getting a bit long, but otherwise studying the face of her first best friend with a smile. Scorpius was two years older than Lily, but the two had instantly bonded her first night in the Great Hall.

When she had sat down at the Slytherin table to the stunned silence of an entire student body, Scorpius had watched her closely with a cautious smile. At the end of the sorting a charmed paper-serpent had crawled towards Lily. It was folded carefully, and looked like the origami figurines her Aunt Hermione had taught them to make one Christmas. When it reached Lily the small snake had reared up and opened its fanged mouth. With a friendly hiss the words "Welcome home, Potter!" had appeared in glimmering silver and green.

The photo was taken two years later, Scorpius was a freshly-made Prefect, and well on his way to making Head Boy. They were laughing quite obnoxiously at something, and Lily remembered it was probably at the shock on Sarah Nott's face when Scorpius had rejected her offer for a date. It was the day they had both come out to their house. The ensuing celebrations by Lily's brothers in the Hogwarts kitchens that midnight had been nothing short of spectacular. She wished she had photos of those moments.

Heaving herself out of her chair she grabbed a sheet of parchment from her desk and wrote-

 _Dear Scorpius,_

 _Lovely to have heard from you this past month. I know you're busy learning from Uncle Charlie, but please respond to this letter with more than "Dragon dung stinks" or "It get's cold."_

 _Really, Scorp, two years down the road and all I know about your day-to-day is that it's dangerous. Maybe it's time I visit?_

 _I'm writing to share some good news...I was accepted into the society! I've got a meeting next week with the other new members. I think we'll be discussing my research._

 _Write back soon,_

 _Lily_

Lily tied it to her owl's leg, Hera, and opened her bedroom window. Lily watched until the sturdy brown bird was nothing more than a speck in the distance.

Settling into her chair once more she focused entirely on _Taming the Shrew: A transfigurationist's guide to practical healing_ , _vol. 1_.

Around 6:00 Lily heard voices mumbling downstairs. The noise grew by 6:30 and Lily realized her mum was throwing a party despite her earlier protests. With a sigh, she closed her book and ventured out of her room.

Downstairs were her Aunts Hermione, Fleur, Angelina, her Grandmother Molly, her Uncles Ron, Bill, and George, with Gramps Arthur. Not to mention all the cousins.

"Oh, Lily! There you are!" Ginny said excitedly. Everyone in the room turned around and smiled brightly. Lily rolled her eyes at her mom but accepted everyone's congratulations as graciously as she could.

"Mum, a word?" Lily asked after the final hug from her family.

"Sure thing, dear."

"I thought we said no party!" Lily whispered.

"This isn't a party, it's just your family."

"Mum, there are almost twenty people here!"

"Yes, well. We have a large family dear. I don't know why you want to keep it a secret, it's such a wonderful achievement! You should be proud."

"I am proud." Lily said hotly.

"Good, then there's no need for more discussion."

"Mum, please, don't make this a big thing. No toasts or anything silly like that."

"Lily," Ginny was exasperated now, "what is the big deal?"

"I'm scared!" Lily admitted finally, throwing her arms up in the air.

"Lily, there is no reason for you to be scared. You're going to do just fine. They wouldn't have given it to you if they didn't think you could do it." Ginny hugged her daughter.

"Mum, no offense, but that's not very comforting since you didn't even know what the Young Transfigurationists' Society was until about six hours ago." Lily smiled.

"I've been speaking with your Aunt all day, Lily. I think I understand a bit more than you're giving me credit for."

"Mum, I'm eighteen years old and have to come up with a completely new topic of viable research and then find supervisors, secure funding, find a host institution...and then there's all the other stuff that I don't even know about yet."

"Seems to me like you already did that this last year at Hogwarts…" Ginny reminded her gently.

"Yes, well. It was easy then, everyone wanted to help."

"And these Transfigurationists want to help too! That's why they picked you and made you chair."

Lily's silence told Ginny that her daughter wasn't convinced.

"Lily, stop worrying. I know you're going to be fine. You'll just have to buckle down and work hard until you figure it out, just like anything else you've ever done."

"Okay, mum." Lily said finally, rubbing her face with her hands.

"Good, now come help me set up the tables outside."

When Lily got outside she saw that her brother's had already set up the tables. Her uncles and several cousins were gathered around them, discussing their long days in the office.

"Hey, sis." James said as she sat down, ruffling her hair. Of all the Potter children, James was the only one who had gotten the Weasley height. He was tall and lanky still, even though his days were no longer filled with conditioning and quidditch practices. Albus gave her a large smile across the table, "Good job, Lil." he told her, reaching over for a high-five. His travel cloak was draped over the back of his chair and his thick arms were visible in the short-sleeved tee he was wearing. Unlike James, who had certainly gotten lazy after graduation, Albus had kept up his workouts, taking his Auror training very seriously. James and Lily had teased him about it for months, asking why he even bothered when he would surely be given desk duty by their father at the end of his training period this fall since he was so incompetent.

The three knew this would never happen, Albus had turned out to be a very good Auror and they knew his father couldn't spare such an energetic young man on paperwork. That's what the senior witches and wizards were for with their slow reflexes and butterbeer bellies.

Dinner that night went very quietly, which was surprising since Lily could see that both her grandparents and parents were simply bursting with pride. She thought she had gotten off the hook once dessert was served and no one else had mentioned her new position, until James and Albus smirked at her and stood.

After a few love-taps and several discrete coughs, the twenty plus assembled Weasleys, Potters, and Lupins finally quieted.

"Good evening, illustrious family," James started.

"We're so thrilled to have you join us tonight to celebrate the achievements of our youngest Potter." Albus continued. Lily's cousins cheered and hooted for her.

"We know that at first you were all a bit confused as to why Lily, bad-ass Sltytherin, Head Girl and star Chaser would join such a lame group of Transfiguration fanatics," James said teasingly.

"Yes, up until a few hours ago, we know that most of you idiots had never heard of the Young Transfigurationists Society,"

"But the fact of the matter is, Lily is not a bad-ass. She is a tame bookworm."

Chuckles greeted James's latest statement. And Lily snorted at her brother's use of the word 'tame'.

"We have known this our whole lives, but as the excellent older brothers that we are, we shielded this most unfortunate fact from the rest of you so that dearest Lily could avoid ridicule."

"It seems our efforts were all for naught, however." James said sadly.

"Indeed. Tonight, we are gathered here to celebrate the second largest book worm of the family-"

"Aunt Hermione, don't worry, your title is safe." James cut off his younger brother.

"For her outrageous obsession with Transfiguration." Albus finished.

"We propose a toast!" James and Albus said at the same time.

"A toast to Lily Luna Potter, may you discover horribly dangerous spells and write the most difficult transfiguration text in wizarding history with which to torture the future students of Hogwarts!" Albus winked at his sister and raised his glass to her.

"A toast to Lily!" Harry cried raising his own glass. The rest of her family followed suit, crying "Lily!" and "Hear, hear!"


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2: Muggles, train rides, and coffee shops [September-October 2030]**

Lily was inducted into the Young Transfigurationist's Society on September 25th, only one week after her initial meeting with the Board of Directors, Selection Committee, and fellow inductees. The ceremony took place in an old Ministry atrium and was a very quiet affair. Lily stood when her name was called and proceeded to the podium. Director Bletchley shook her hand stiffly and then placed a pointed wizard's hat (much grander than the hat permitted to Hogwarts students) with a shimmering green and purple tassel around the brim1.

Professor Hawthorne was seated with Lily's parents somewhere in the middle of the second row. After the ceremony, Lily was hustled over to a group of stately looking witches and wizards, all of whom had various tokens dangling from the colored tassels adorning the brims of their pointed hats.

"Charles, I'd like to introduce you to one of my former students."

"Ah, yes, Lily Potter. Pleasure to meet you. I'm Charles Hollingsworth, young Dione and I were inducted into the Society in the same year." Charles winked at Professor Hawthorne.

"Hello, sir." Lily said, sticking out her hand. Charles shook it vigorously and smiled. His green eyes seemed tired to Lily, as if faded by age like the green couch at her grandmother's home.

"Very exciting work you did last year while at Hogwarts." He added.

"Thank you, very much. I had quite a bit of help…" Lily said nervously.

"Nonsense!" Charles interrupted. "Ideas like that...I know fresh work when I see it. My own research institute would very much look forward to working with you this year, if you'll consider it. Would you like to come by and take a look at the facilities?"

"That would be lovely." Lily said with what she hoped was a confident smile.

"Excellent. I'll have my assistant send you the details. We work from one of those old manor homes that had been confiscated after the war. Very peaceful place right in the middle of Cumbria. A bit chilly in the winter, but nothing compared to those highland winters at Hogwarts!"

Charles bustled off without truly saying goodbye.

An offer from a research institute, already!

"Come along, Lily. There are some other people I'd like to introduce you to." Professor Hawthorne grabbed the young witch by the elbow and led her to another group of Society members.

It was equally terrifying as the first introduction to Charles Hollingsworth, but eventually Lily seemed to get the hang of the hand shakes and head-nodding that accompanied networking.

"Well, you see, what I'm truly interested in is the modification of the Animagus transformation process and the potential for healing damaged organs. I think there are some wonderful things happening in the muggle world, transplants, and we could really learn a lot from that whole line of thinking." Lily was ensconced in a circle of three older women, all dressed in black robes with matching crests. The witch's own hats were bobbing as they nodded to what Lily was saying. At some point in the conversation Professor Hawthorne had stepped away, but Lily hadn't even noticed.

"I completely agree!" The tallest of the witches said.

"Yes, and there are some Americans working on similar projects right now that we've been in touch with. It would be wonderful to really explore this idea, Ms. Potter." Added the witch in the middle.

"Would you like to visit our research library? We work out of Wales." The third witch, the smallest and youngest, spoke up.

"I, yes, that would be wonderful." Lily smiled brightly. It was the third invitation she had received today, and the one she felt the most excited about. The first two, Lily felt, had come as some sort of favor to Professor Hawthorne. This invitation, however, Lily had secured all on her own.

"Wonderful, we will send an owl to the Potter residence this afternoon!"

Lily shook each of their hands once more and watched as they exited the Ministry room together, all three of their heads bowed towards one another in animated conversation. Lily sighed wistfully and turned to find her parents. They were sitting in a quiet corner, observing the room with anxious faces, and smiling politely when some witch or wizard came up to say hello.

"Mum, dad!" Lily said happily.

Her parents smiled and pulled her into tight hugs.

"We're so happy for you, Lily." Harry told his daughter.

"Yes we are!" Ginny agreed.

"Thank you," Lily told them sincerely. "But, I'm starving and I think it's time for us to go home."

Ginny, relief evident on her face, led Harry and Lily from the room. In a few short minutes the three had apparated back to the Potter home.

"Is that pizza?" Lily asked.

"Your brothers picked it up for you." Harry told her as he shrugged off his formal Wizard's robes.

The five Potters were soon gathered around the kitchen table, boxes of muggle pizza opened, and their mouths full.

"Best celebratory meal, ever," Lily told her family as she reached for her fourth slice.

"Glad you like it, Lils." Albus told her.

"Yep, best 30£ we've spent in a while." James agreed.

"So how did it go?" asked Albus.

"The ceremony part was a little boring, but at least it was quick. Professor Hawthorne introduced me to some older Society members."

"Who was that last group, Lily? You were speaking to them for a while." Ginny asked.

"Those are the researchers at the Dyfed Institute in Wales. We were talking about what I'd like to study."

"And what did they have to say?"

"They'd like me to visit the research library this week."

"And that's good, right?" James asked Lily with a mouthful of pizza.

"That's disgusting, James." Lily rolled her eyes. "But, yes. It's good. They might have an opening for a junior researcher."

"So that means you'd move to Wales?" Albus asked her.

"I guess if they ask me to." Lily said with a shrug.

"Someone's got post." Harry interrupted.

A large grey barn owl hooted from outside the kitchen window. Lily jumped up to let the bird in and it quickly flew to the small perch in the corner of the room that the Potters kept for precisely this occasion. While Lily untied the parchment the owl helped itself to water and a few owl treats.

 _Dear Ms. Potter,_

 _It was wonderful to speak with you today regarding the future of your transfiguration research. We at the Dyfed Institute of Wales would like to invite you to our research library this week to observe the Trans-Atlantic Metamorphosis Competition._

 _We would be happy to host you for the duration of the competition (three days). Please respond by owl post to let us know when to expect you. Because of the short notice, a portkey cannot be acquired. Please see attached for travel instructions by train._

 _Sincerely,_

 _Tinsley Baggs_

 _Associate Director of Research_

 _Dyfed Institute of Wales_

"It's an invitation to Wales." Lily told her family, passing the letter to Harry.

"Sounds like we need to get you a ticket for the train!" said her father.

"You'd better start packing, dear." Ginny added, reading over Harry's shoulder. "Your father will take care of the train."

Lily helped her brothers clear the kitchen of the empty pizza boxes and wrote a quick reply back to the witches at Dyfed.

James and Albus hung around for a little while longer and Harry and Ginny spent too much time trying to purchase tickets using the muggle computer before giving up and flooing to Hermione's house for help.

"We'll be back!" Ginny shouted just before they left.

"I'm out," James told his siblings. "Got a date with Joycelyn Jones!" He apparated away before Lily or Albus could comment.

"Pub?" Albus asked.

"Let's go."

Lily took his arm and with a quick pop the two were standing outside of Albus's apartment. They crossed the street and entered the dank muggle bar that Albus loved.

Since it was a Wednesday and barely four o'clock, the place was dead. Aside from the barman, Lily and Albus were the only ones in the building for the next hour until working Londoners started trickling in.

"I'll get the next round." Lily stood up and headed to the bar. She ordered two more beers, paid, and was turning to head back to the table when someone bumped into her from the side.

"Watch yourself." She said quickly as some beer sloshed over the rim of the glass.

"Sorry, the guy behind me just bumped me." A young woman with light brown hair and eyes said with a smile.

"Oh, um, no problem." Lily hurried back to her table where Albus was smirking.

"Did you just run away from that woman?"

"Absolutely not."

"It looks like you did."

"Well I didn't."

"She's coming over here." Albus told her, still smirking.

"You're joking."

"Nope." Albus said, just as the woman greeted them both with a quick hello

"I'm Albus and this is my sister, Lily."

"Oh good, I was worried you were her boyfriend."

Albus laughed slightly and kicked Lily under the table.

"Did you want to sit?" Lily mumbled. The woman nodded and scanned the room, nearly full, for a bar stool.

"Here, you can have mine." Albus offered.

"I'm Heather." She introduced herself while taking the offered seat.

"Nice to meet you Heather." Albus said with a smile. "Do you work around here?"

"Not really. My mate lives around the corner, I'm meeting her for a drink. What about you?"

"Our flat is across the street." Albus told her.

"I love this area, I'm trying to find somewhere to rent myself." Heather told them. "What do you you do, Lily?"

"Oh, I just graduated."

"Off to uni in the fall?"

"Not exactly. I'm planning on doing some research on, um, animals. Just for a year."

"Ohh, a biologist? I was never any good at science. I studied politics and now I'm working in the House of Commons."

"Wow, that sounds really interesting." Lily said genuinely.

"It is. My MP is a real nice guy, a bit arrogant, but aren't they all?"

"So what is it that you do?" Lily asked.

"Oh, a little bit of everything. With the elections just a few months away I'm mostly focusing on our campaign materials. It's important that voters know exactly what the party has accomplished."

"And what has the party accomplished?" Albus asked curiously. While all three Potters had taken Muggle studies for two years while at Hogwarts, not much was covered on modern politics. All the knowledge Lily had on British and Scottish parliaments came from her Aunt Hermione's rants at family dinners.

"Why don't you two tell me what it is you think we've managed to do! This is perfect, I can get some feedback from our voters." Heather looked at the two of them expectantly.

"Um, well…" Albus started.

"We aren't very political. Probably not your best test group." Lily said quickly.

Heather laughed, "That's okay! You guys are exactly the types of voters I'm trying to reach."

"Well, my Aunt does say that she finds the government to be very cooperative right now. I guess that's a good thing."

Lily was fairly certain that when her Aunt Hermione had mentioned the Prime Minister's willingness to prosecute wizarding crimes without interference from muggle law enforcement that this wasn't exactly what she meant...but it was all Lily had to go on.

"That's very true-but what specific policies or actions can you think of, maybe you have an example of how we're more cooperative than others?" Heather probed.

Lily and Albus were saved, however, when another young woman appeared at Heather's elbow.

"Heather, please stop bothering these very nice looking people with your questions!"

"Becky!" Heather said happily, turning to hug the newcomer.

The group managed to drag two more stools over to their small table over the next hour as patrons shuffled in and out. It was a challenge for Lily and Albus to explain away their rather large gaps of muggle culture but a simple shrug and 'boarding school' did help them get away with most of it.

Albus and Becky had wandered off to the bar to get the next round, talking quickly about muggle music, which left Lily and Heather to themselves.

"Lily," Heather started, "would your brother be terribly upset if we went somewhere more quiet?"

"Yeah, that would be nice." Lily smiled back.

The two hopped down from their bar stools and headed for the door.

"And where are you going?" Becky asked them, on her way back from the bar.

"Just getting some air." Lily assured, sending a quick wink her brother's way. He grabbed her elbow as she walked past.

"Lily," he started in a whisper.

"Just don't apparate home." Lily said quickly before leading Heather out by the hand.

"Nice place." Heather said once Lily had gotten the door open. The front room, which also doubled as Albus's kitchen, was a mess. Tea mugs and dirty plates littered the counters and copies of the Daily Prophet were stacked haphazardly on the table.

"My brother's a bit of a messy roommate." Lily said, pulling the woman through with the hopes that she wouldn't notice the moving pictures on the newspapers.

"This is nice." Heather said, observing Lily's room. The stacks of books along the wall and piles of notebooks gave it a cozy feel, even though LIly had done very little in the way of decorating since she'd moved in.

"Thanks," Lily smiled, falling back onto her bed. Heather glanced at her nervously and quickly looked away. The other woman began fidgeting with the buttons on her grey cardigan.

"Are you alright?"

"Yes, um. It's just, well." Heather looked like a small child who had been caught stealing. "It's just, this is my first time with another girl-woman."

Lily repressed the desire to roll her eyes. Of course.

"You don't have to stay." She assured her. "I'll walk you out."

"No, it's not, I mean, I want to." Heather put her hands out as Lily stood and blocked the younger woman's access to the door.

"Look, Heather," Lily began with a sigh, "I don't mean to be rude, but I'm not trying to be a part of some grand experiment or anything. I have an important day tomorrow and I'm not really in the right place to help you figure out your sexuality."

"Oh, I don't need...that is, I didn't expect you to help with anything exactly. I just wanted to try…"

"That's what they all say." Lily grumbled, actually rolling her eyes this time.

"What do you mean, that's what they all say?" Heather asked. Her cheeks were red, clearly from embarrassment, and, Lily realized, annoyance. "Do you regularly flirt with confused girls in bars and then turn them down once you get them home?"

"Woah. You came onto me, remember? And I'm just tired of being used by women who just want a quick snog because their boyfriends are pissing them off."

"I would never use someone like that!"

"I'm just going on my past experiences here." Lily admitted, feeling guilty for making the assumption.

"How many experiences can you have had at a boarding school in the middle of Scotland?" Heather demanded harshly.

"I've been out since I was thirteen, Heather. Basically every girl who wanted to piss off her boyfriend has tried it on with me. Even when I was a gross teen covered with pimples."

"Well, they sound pitiful."

"Yes." Lily nodded. "I thought you knew what you wanted, otherwise I wouldn't have taken you home with me."

"But I do know what I want." Heather argued.

"Have you ever kissed another woman?"

"Yes."

"Sober?"

"No…"

"My point exactly. I'll walk you out."

"God, you're worse than a man." Heather snapped. "You can't decide what it is that I want or don't want. Only I get to do that." She pushed Lily back onto the bed and kicked off her shoes.

"Heather," Lily said again.

"I'm telling you that I want the same things you do. Just because I haven't done it yet doesn't mean I don't know it. That's the same kind of backwards thinking that homophobic cunts use on gay people." Heather was standing over Lily now, her legs on either side of the red-head's knees.

"I'm going to kiss you now, Lily Potter." Heather informed her. She grabbed Lily's hands and placed them on her hips and took a deep breath. Lily, a Slytherin at heart, rolled her eyes at the dramatics. When Heather's lips touched her own she squeezed the woman's hips a little tighter and pulled her down.

Heather fell with a small 'oompf'. The two ended up on their sides, awkward and tangled like teenagers until Heather maneuvered herself back on top.

"You see, I told you I knew what I wanted." Heather said bossily while she took off her cardigan and green button-down.

"Heather, stop talking." Lily told her, sitting up slightly to take off her own t-shirt, a retro "Wicked Sisters" tee that, in hindsight, she probably shouldn't have worn to a muggle pub since the band members had a habit of moving.

Even though this wasn't her first time, it still felt very new. It was the first time Lily had ever slept with a muggle. While before she would have used her wand to dim the lights, transfigure pillows, or provide an extra bit of lubrication if needed, now she only had Heather and her own body to focus on. The slips and bumps brought her back to her first time in fifth year, tucked away in a broom closet.

"You okay?" Lily asked Heather who was still lying on her back, legs splayed awkwardly.

"I just need a minute." Heather told her breathlessly.

"It's been about ten." Lily giggled, running her hands down the woman's side, cradling her hip for a moment before moving down her leg.

"I don't want to stop."

"Nothing's stopping you." Lily reminded her, whispering softly into her ear. She propped herself up on her elbow and trailed her fingers slowly towards Heather's inner thigh, watching the way Heather's face changed from blissed-out happiness to anxious anticipation.

"You're right." Heather said with a smirk, spreading her legs even further apart and taking a hold of Lily's hand, dragging it to where she wanted it.

* * *

Lily was curled up snugly under her blankets, dreaming peacefully, when sharp knocks on her bedroom door woke her up.

"Lils, mum is here for you." Albus's muffled voice came through the door.

Lily threw her covers off and flopped over the side of her bed. She stood up with a yawn and stretched slowly.

"What's going on?" a tired voice asked from behind her.

"I've got to a train to catch." Lily said quietly. She dug through the large pile of clothes adorning the armchair in the corner of her room before surfacing with jeans and a plain black sweater.

"Lily, I'm coming in! We have to get you packed for the train!" Ginny Potter's voice was swiftly followed by the opening of her bedroom door. Several voices all sounded at once, "No!", in various octaves. Heather's voice came out as a quick squeak. She cleared her throat as she met Ginny's eyes.

"Hello." Heather said quietly.

"Oh, um. Hello, dear. I'm Lily's mum. Very nice to meet you."

"Mum, can you wait in the kitchen for a minute."

"Yes, good idea. I'll just put on some tea."

"Thanks." Lily said with a grimace.

The upside of boarding school (and there were many) was that her parents had never walked in on her and her girlfriends before. Lily wanted to disappear into the floor as she watched her mother's bright red face disappear.

"Well, that was awkward." Heather muttered, dressing underneath the blankets on Lily's bed.

"Sorry about that." Lily told her with a smile.

"You don't live with your parents, do you?"

"No, she just has a habit of getting into everyone else's business." Lily assured.

"Glad to hear it. Think you can sneak me out? I don't really want to have breakfast with your mum."

"Let me check the coast is clear."

Lily opened the door and looked down the hallway which led to Albus's room at the other end, with the kitchen and sitting room situated on opposite sides. Sneaking Heather to the kitchen would only work if Albus had cornered their mother somewhere in the sitting room.

"Hallway is empty. It's worth a shot." Lily whispered over her shoulder. The two tiptoed through the hall and slipped into the kitchen where they found Albus and Ginny Potter awkwardly stirring their tea in total silence.

"Hello again!" Ginny said with a bright smile.

"Er, hi. I have to get to work." Heather said quickly. She made a break for the door and was gone before any of the Potters could say goodbye.

Lily grabbed a mug off the counter and poured some tea for herself. The room was silent for another thirty seconds before Albus finally said what they had all been thinking-"Well, this is awkward."

"Albus, don't start now." Ginny warned.

"Mum, what did you need to see me about so early anyway?"

"We booked your ticket on the train, dear. You do remember that you have a very important meeting today?"

"Of course I remember. It still doesn't explain why you're here at," She glanced at the goldfish clock hanging over the sink, "7am!"

"Your train is at 9 o'clock, Lily. I thought you might want help packing. If I had known you had a guest…"

"Albus, why didn't you tell mum not to come in my room?"

"I had to get ready for work too! I thought she would just wait in the sitting room like she normally does. Speaking of, I should really be going."

The two Potter women watched him leave and sat in silence once more.

"I'm sorry." They both said at the same time.

"Don't apologize." They echoed again.

"Let's just get you packed, shall we?" Ginny offered, patting her daughter's hand softly.

"Sure thing, mum. Most of my robes are at yours. I'll just gather my books and things and meet you there."

"I'll wait, we can side-along." Ginny told her.

"Mum, I do know how to apparate."

"It's just the distance, dear. I don't like the idea of it. Humor me, will you?"

"Godric's Hollow is not that far from London."

"Just get your things, Lily."

Lily shoved her chair back from the kitchen table and went to her room. She had to get on her knees to pull her duffle out from under the spare bed. From there it was a quick crawl to the arm chair, where she stuffed all of her clothes inside without folding them.

"Really, Lily. There's a spell to fold them." Ginny said from the doorway.

"I thought you were going to wait in the kitchen." Lily grumbled.

"What has gotten into you this morning?"

"Nothing has gotten into me." Lily grumbled, standing now to start tossing her books into the over-stuffed bag.

"Really, Lily?"

Lily ignored her mother and continued stuffing random socks and textbooks into the outside pockets of the bag.

"There, all done. We can go now." She dusted her hands off, grabbed her wand, and turned to face her mother.

"Tell me what's the matter, please." Ginny asked.

"Mum, I'm telling you,"

"Stop lying to me, Lily Luna. I can tell that you're upset."

"I'm not upset. I'm embarrassed." Lily relented.

"Embarrassed?" Ginny asked.

"Yes, mum. You just walked in on me and another woman and it's just a bit unsettling."

"Oh, please. I've seen James and Albus in much worse. At least you waited until you left the house before you started bringing them home."

"Mum, this is not about James and Albus," Lily tried to cut her off.

"There was one summer when James had two different girls over to the house in the same week. Your father walked in on the first one in the bathroom, talk about traumatizing. And then, I found the second one with James in the kitchen using that muggle frosting in the tube your father likes so much."

"Gross."

"Yes, well, we don't buy it anymore." Ginny said comfortingly.

"Can we go now?" Lily asked, thoroughly horrified and embarrassed for herself and her older brother.

"Lily, I don't care who you bring home. As long as you're both happy and it's consensual and safe," Ginny grabbed her daughter into a tight hug.

"Okay, mum. We're leaving now. Apparate away, please."

"You're just like your father." Ginny said with a grin before she disapparated with Lily and the duffle bag in tow.

Packing was a quick affair and before Lily had time to finish her breakfast she was being sent to catch a train from Manchester, as trains from London didn't run to Pembrokeshire. Lily hugged both her parents before she climbed aboard, seeking a quiet window seat. This was the first time she had ever traveled alone using exclusively muggle transportation and the experience was slightly uncanny. Before, with her brothers and parents, Lily had never realized how out of place she looked compared to muggle women her age. She was the only one on the train without a glowing book thingy or bizarre ear muffs that everyone seemed to be wearing.

"Will you need the password for the wireless, dear?" An older woman tapped Lily on the shoulder just a minute after she had gotten settled.

"Um, no. Thank you." Lily said politely, forgetting for a moment that wireless was what muggles used to connect to one another.

A middle-aged man sat in the seat directly across from her just as the train started to pull away. Lily watched surreptitiously while he dug out the bizarre earmuffs and plugged them into a much smaller, glowing device.

"I know, it's the older model. I just can't seem to give it up." The man smiled gently at her and looked adoringly at the object.

"I, um, understand completely." Lily mumbled.

"So where are you headed?" He asked with polite interest.

"Pembrokeshire."

"Fancy that, so am I!" He exclaimed.

"How strange." Lily said carefully, looking at the man more closely. She jumped slightly when he winked and leaned in closer.

"You wouldn't happen to be traveling to the Dyfed Institute, would you?"

Lily sat dumbfounded.

"I thought so, my old colleagues sent me a note this morning to check the train for you. Luckily, I recognized your father as you were boarding. I've been asked to escort you to the institute. It can be a bit tricky for newcomers to locate."

"I'm sorry, but what's your name?"

"Excuse me, how rude. You're absolutely right. My name is Bailey Landergust. How do you do, Lily Potter?"

"Ba...Bailey Landergust?" Lily thought her heart might have stopped working from shock. "I've read all your books! I used so much of your research in my own project this spring. It's an honor to meet you."

Lily stuck out her hand for him to shake and Bailey laughed gleefully.

"Now, don't get all weird. I'm just a regular, muggle-born wizard like half of England. I am curious as to how you became interested in this particular line of spellwork." He rustled around in the large briefcase and pulled out a large stack of parchment. Lily was horrified to realize it was her Hogwarts thesis, at least a copy of it.

"How did you get that?" Lily asked, embarrassed.

"Oh, Professor Hawthorne and I are good friends. But back to your main research question, how did a witch like yourself even come into contact with this type of muggle thinking? I've had the advantage, you see, my eldest brother is a physician."

"I don't really know what you mean? After reading everything I could find about failed human transfiguration to cure lycanthropy, this just seemed to be the next avenue. Have I done something wrong?"

"Wrong? Absolutely not! I think it's just marvelous that you were able to reach these conclusions using only magical research literature. Mattie was certainly correct in pointing me in your direction."

"Mattie?"

"Mathilda, you met her at the induction ceremony." Bailey said absently. He was shifting through some of the papers on his lap, clearly searching for something in particular.

"Here! You suggest that introduction of transfigured tissue to cure several wizarding diseases-dragon pox, spattergoit…"

"That's just a hypothesis. It's widely known in the medical community that those diseases can't simply be cured by magic."

Bailey ignored her, "And then you go on to suggest that an infusion of properly transfigured animal cells may serve to combat the disease."

"Yes, that's highly unrealistic, but it seems worth a try."

"But it's not unrealistic!" Bailey exclaimed loudly.

Lily then realized that despite all of their noise and gesticulation over the last four minutes, none of the muggles seated directly next to them seemed bothered.

"Did you cast a spell?" Lily whispered, pointing at the two teenage girls who were thoroughly engrossed in their glowing objects.

"No," Bailey flapped his hands at them, "those tablets are better than any silencing or anti-muggle charm out there. Totally enthralled in those things."

"Oh." Lily responded, pretending to understand what a tablet was.

"So your hypothesis isn't unrealistic," (Lily cringed at the double negative) "because muggles have been doing this type of thing for almost a century."

"What?" Lily cried, distressed.

"Yes, they've been doing heart transplants with various animals, mostly pigs. They've even started successfully implanting printed organs and cloned cells into sick patients. There's a lot we can learn from them."

"So my research isn't original at all." Lily asked him, clearly very distraught.

"No one's research is original, Lily. We all borrow bits and pieces from one another and hope that eventually someone gets onto the right idea."

"I suppose." She said.

"Trust me, you're ideas are very interesting. That's why Mattie and her colleagues are planning to offer you a residency this afternoon."

"Really?"

"Certainly. They don't let just any graduate of Hogwarts see their competitions. These events are typically closed-door affairs. You see, the institute has a sort of ownership of some of the research that will be presented here. They offer prizes to the top three and invite them to conduct three-month residencies at the Institute. Those who are awarded fourth through sixth place are offered an un-paid residency, and the remaining are sent home. If you don't take the position, you're placed under a three-month research moratorium."

"That seems a bit, well, wrong." Lily said cautiously.

"It's how these institutes continue to get Ministry funding-having exclusive access to the best and the brightest. Besides, the only people who come to these types of things are those who want to be offered the residency. If you don't have funding for the research, it's rather hard to do, don't you think?" Bailey neatened the pile of papers from Lily's thesis and placed them back into his briefcase.

"I guess so, yeah."

"You'll see when we get there. Which, should be very soon. I'm going to catch a quick nap. Wake me when we've arrived?"

Without waiting for a real response from Lily, Bailey Landergust placed his earmuffs over his head, closed his eyes, and drifted to sleep.

Lily had never been to Wales before and she found that Tenby was perhaps the most beautiful place she had ever seen. Bailey led her off the small platform and together they exited the train station.

"Around this corner." Bailey told her over his shoulder. Lily hesitated as he walked into a dingy looking alley, complete with a few stray cats. What if this was some bizarre ploy to get a young Potter on their own?

"Lily?" He called. Taking a deep breath, Lily took hold of her wand inside her pocket and stepped around the corner.

Bailey was standing in front of an old painted archway which framed a beautiful seascape. In the distance of the image was a small white building set on a hill. There were large birds painted in the sky, and as Lily stepped closer she imagined that their black wings were struggling to move.

"In we go!" Bailey said happily, offering Lily his hand. He held his wand in front of him and set his shoulders. In one quick hop he had set himself and Lily into motion. Even though Lily expected it, she couldn't help but close her eyes as they vaulted through the painted brick and onto a quiet beachfront. A small noise at her feet drew her attention to one of the grey strays that had apparently followed them through the archway.

The three, Bailey, Lily, and cat, set off for the hill in the distance. Halfway there Lily wondered why they hadn't just apparated.

"Hold on tight, we've cleared the apparation barrier." Bailey said, offering her his hand once more. In a split second Lily went from standing on a sandy dune, surrounded by pebbles and waving seagrass, to spinning in a small, stone courtyard filled with overgrown plants, a mixture of magical and non-magical.

"Uncle Neville would love it here." She said to Bailey.

"Neville Longbottom? Yes, I'm sure he would. He was a great Herbology professor."

"You had Neville at Hogwarts?"

"Of course! How old do you think I am?"

"Um…"

"Don't answer that." Bailey said with a smile.

"Bailey!" a woman's voice called to them. Lily turned around to see one of the three witches she had met at the induction ceremony striding towards Bailey.

"Hello, Mattie. It's great to see you!" Bailey hugged the older woman.

"Lily, lovely to have you stay with us. Let's get you settled into your room, shall we?" Mattie waved her wand carefully and Lily's bag pulled itself out of her hand and began floating patiently alongside the older witch.

"I'll see you at dinner!" Bailey called as the two walked away.

"How was the trip?" Mattie asked.

"It was very quick, I ran into Bailey on the train."

"Oh good, I'm glad he was able to find you. I know that Tinsley sent instructions in the letter, but really, I hated the idea of you getting lost."

"It was nice to have someone with me." Lily admitted. On the train her conversation with Bailey had given her plenty of distraction and it wasn't until now, being lead down the narrow halls that she was able to really feel the nerves setting in.

"We'll serve lunch in half an hour. You just need to take this hall all the way to the end and then make a left."

Mattie opened Lily's door and let her into the small, neatly furnished dorm room.

"Thank you." Lily told her as Mattie shut the door with a smile.

Lily flopped down onto the narrow bed and closed her eyes. Her stomach was turning and she couldn't seem to focus on anything except what Bailey had told her on the train. _They're going to offer you the residency this afternoon._

Would Lily say yes? She had invitations to visit two other institutes next week, would it be rude to make a decision without seeing them?

With her eyes closed, Lily could feel the soft hum of all the magic in the building. It reminded her very clearly of the transfiguration classrooms at Hogwarts. There was a certain flavor to transfiguration magic that had attracted Lily from a very young age. It was fast-paced and a little tempestuous; a magic that was hard to love because of the delicate spell work required.

Sitting up so that she wouldn't fall asleep, Lily summoned her travel bag to her lap and began to unpack her things. As was her habit, she had over-packed on the books and severely under-packed clothes. There was only one robe in the bag. Lily placed all five books neatly onto the desk and set up a writing station with her quill, parchment, and various colored inks.

With ten minutes left until lunch was to be served, Lily ventured from her room and walked nervously down the hall. It was reminiscent of her first days at Hogwarts, before any of the Slytherins had really befriended her, while she still had to walk to her classes and meals on her own. At the end of the hall was a small statue of a young girl, Lily assumed she was a witch simply because of the location. The girl's hand was raised, gesturing to Lily's left. Following directions, Lily turned and soon entered a small, glass-paned tea room that was being used as the cafeteria of the Institute. While it wasn't quite as overrun by plants as the courtyard had been, Lily did feel that plants slightly outnumbered the humans in the room.

There was a collection of witches and wizards seated at various tables around the room.

"Lily! Come join us!" Bailey shouted when he saw her enter. He was seated at one of the larger round tables. The group at the table appeared to be significantly younger than the others, although with witches and wizards it was always difficult to tell.

"Hello." Lily said politely as she took a seat.

"You must be the youngest Potter?" A woman asked.

"Lily." Someone added.

"You look remarkably like your parents!" chimed in a third.

"Yes, thank you." Lily said with a nod. All the Potter and Weasley children had been subjected to this sort of thing since birth. At one point, Lily remembered, it had bothered her to constantly be compared to her parents. After her fifth year, when she really began to cement her own identity she started caring less and less about the conclusions people drew on their own.

"Your parents must be excited for you!" This came from the witch who had supplied everyone with Lily's name. She had dusty brown hair and a pale, round face. Her eyes were a deep brown and Lily thought she might be in her 40's.

"They are a little confused, but very excited that I've found something to do."

"Tell us, how do Mr. and Mrs. Potter spend their time now that you all are grown? I remember seeing the photos in the paper-very attentive parents!"

Lily really wished this woman would stop asking about her family.

"Really, Bertha. I don't think Lily wants to discuss her parent's leisure time. What is your primary research focus?"

A fourth member of the group had spoken up; a woman with short dark hair and outrageously long eye-lashes.

"I'm interested in the medical applications of certain transfigured animal tissues." Lily addressed her directly, turning her body to face the woman who happened to be sitting next to her.

"I hope to be able to work with Lily as she develops this further, I think our research areas overlap very well!" Bailey said quickly.

"Oh, Bailey, you can't take all the promising students. Leave a few for the rest of us?" Bertha asked him with a wide smile.

"I'll fight you for this one Bertha!"

"I encourage you to keep your options open, Lily." Said the dark-haired neighbor brusquely.

As she spoke, a soft voice chimed softly above the conversation in the room, "Lunch is served!".

Many guests stood up quickly and hurried to the side of the room where large plates of food were being brought out by house elves and witches to be placed on the sideboard. Lily remained in her seat, having no interest in fighting the crowd for a plate of food just yet.

"I'm Amanda." The woman next to her said.

"It's nice to meet you, Amanda." Lily responded with a smile.

"I've just finished up a two-year exchange in the States, this will be my first competition on my own. I have to admit that I'm a little nervous."

Amanda spoke carefully and quietly, but Lily doubted that the woman was actually nervous. Her movements were sure and her tone confident. Nonetheless, she did appreciate the attempt to put Lily at ease.

"I've just graduated from Hogwarts, I've never been to one of these before. How does it work?"

"Well, roughly fifteen researchers will present their topics today. It's divided into various categories, and the top two presenters from each category will be offered a position with the Institute. The judges are a mix of retired researchers, peers, and Ministry officials."

"That sounds very intense. How long is your presentation?"

"They're capped at half an hour. The trick is to put your goals first, start with impressive, introduce any problems in the middle, and finish up with something uplifting. I call it the sandwich method. Bury the bad news somewhere they're more likely to forget about it."

"That seems like a good strategy. Can you tell me what your presentation will be on?"

"That would ruin it! I expect you to come to see the show. I'll be going on at 2:15 in the Green Parlour."

Lily agreed to attend the presentation and the two decided to join the food line on the side of the room. It was significantly shorter already.

"Lily, here's our schedule for this afternoon!" Bailey exclaimed when she sat back down. Her plate was overflowing with roasted chicken and vegetables. She had also snuck a few biscuits in a napkin.

"Oh good, we'll get to see Amanda." Lily said after reading the time-table.

"Yes, she's presenting some very challenging theories. It should be exciting."

* * *

Bailey had been right and at the end of Lily's brief visit to the Dyfed Institute Maddie had offered her a full-year's research position beginning in November. A week had passed but Lily still found herself unable to mail the acceptance letter. There was a terrifying sense of reality that was sinking in, and Lily wasn't sure that she was prepared for the work ahead of her. This letter, if she ever sent it, was only the start of a very long journey.

"Hello!"

Lily looked up and was greeted by Annie's smiling face.

"Hi, Annie! How are you?" Lily asked quickly. She pushed her papers into a small pile and made space for the other witch at her table.

"A bit overwhelmed, to be honest, but it's good to see you. I'm just going to grab a coffee and I'll be right back." She told Lily as she dropped her heavy satchel onto a chair.

"What are you working on?" She asked Lily upon her return.

"Not working so much as avoiding." Lily told her.

"What are you trying to avoid?"

"I just need to get this sent off and then register with the ministry for a special training course."

"Training for what?"

"Animagi Preparation," Lily said with a deep sigh.

Annie coughed on her coffee. "You're going to become an animagus?"

"It is part of the course I'm being offered, I won't have to start the course until sometime in November."

"Why are you hesitating? Don't you want to be an animagus?"

"Of course I do!" Lily said quickly.

"Well then tie that thing to an owl and get started, Potter." Annie said sternly.

Lily rolled her eyes, but smiled at the woman's attitude. Her parents and brothers had been tiptoeing around Lily since her return, trying to "give her space" so that she could make the decision on her own. Lily appreciated the trust, but really, at 18 she wouldn't mind a few helpful words of guidance.

"Look, when I made the decision to attend muggle university, it was a scary moment. I thought that I had lost my mind, and my parents thought that too. But, sometimes you have to take big risks. From what I remember your brother saying in school, and from what I remember of you, that has never been a problem. Just go for it."

"Thanks, Annie."

"Anytime, now. No more sulking because I have hundreds of pages of court cases to get through today and your bringing down the energy." Annie winked at her.

Lily blushed slightly, and stashed the letter quickly in her bag. She took a deep breath and pulled her newest book towards her: _An Advanced Guide to Animagi._

"Should you really be reading that in this coffee shop?" Annie asked her with a raised eyebrow.

"My aunt magic'ed the cover for me. Only we know what it says."

"It must be convenient having one of the brightest witches in your family."

"That's definitely one word for it."

The two women worked quietly for several hours until Lily's bum was numb and the sky was darkening.

"Sorry, ladies. But we're closing soon."

"Sure thing," Lily said. She had managed to work her way through half of the book, and had several pages of notes written on crisp muggle paper tucked into the cover (she was thankful she had run into Annie, who had rolled her eyes when Lily begged to borrow something to write with about 30 minutes into their silence).

"What are you doing now?" Annie asked Lily as they stood outside, pulling a bright orange knit beanie down onto her blond hair.

"I have plans with my brothers tonight, actually. You?"

"More reading, I'm afraid. I'll just have to rely on the Americans to keep me company since you're ditching me." Annie teased.

"Ah, sorry. Maybe next time!"

"See you around, Lily."

"Goodnight."

One awkward hug later, Lily was apparating out of a dank alleyway and into Albus's flat.


End file.
